Lauren James says she 'couldn't be more proud to be Chelsea' after a memorable night at Stamford Bridge where we overturned a 2-0 deficit to win 3-2 on aggregate to advance through to the Champions League semi-final.
Her assist for Mayra Ramirez just before half time demonstrated not only her quality, but also her work rate as she deftly won the ball back high up up the pitch, before unselfishly playing in her team mate as we made it 3-0 on the night and took the lead overall for the first time in the tie.
James couldn't hide her delight after the final whistle.
She said: 'It's a brilliant result. To come from 2-0 down to make it through on aggregate, I couldn't be more proud to be Chelsea.
'I'm so proud of the girls and everyone worked so hard today, especially in the first half. I felt we needed to start the game like that. We didn't let City get any chances. I think the result speaks for itself.'
Yet a triumph like that doesn't come easily, despite how we made it look in a blistering first-half performance that saw Sandy Baltimore, Nathalie Bjorn and Ramirez all find the back of the net.
Progressing through to a semi-final tie with Barcelona came from a game plan that saw us field an attacking line-up, press high up the pitch and allow the opponent very little breathing space.
'City are a good team,' she acknowledged. 'They've all got amazing individuals that get tight on the ball. So we couldn't give them any space or time and today we managed to do that. One of the goals, we nicked it high up and we put it away.'
Before Chelsea had kicked off, Barcelona had secured their passage through to the semi-final with a 10-2 aggregate win over Wolfsburg, a result that serves as a warning of the task that lies ahead.
The Blues will once again have to battle over two legs for a chance to play in the final in Lisbon on May 24, but the belief the side showed in difficult circumstances against Man City will stand them in good stead for what comes next.
'It's always a tough game against Barca,' LJ recognised. 'But for sure, everyone is up for it and ready to go.'